Breast Cancer Prevention Educational Interventions in Young Women : A Systematic Review

Abstract

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of educational interventions on young women’s knowledge and lifestyles for breast cancer prevention. Methods: We searched CENTRAL, the Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and trial registers to identify experimental studies published between 2000 and 2018. Two reviewers independently selected the studies, appraised methodological quality, and rated the quality of the evidence using the GRADE approach. Results: We included (900 women). One randomized-controlled trial (RCT) from Canada (745 women) and one uncontrolled trial from Colombia (N=155). Both studies were conducted in scholar settings. The Canadian RCT (START study) had low methodological quality, while the Colombian study was rated as very low quality. Very low-quality evidence suggested educational interventions might improve women’s knowledge about the role of physical activity, vegetables and fruit consumption, and alcohol consumption for breast cancer prevention. We have very little confidence in the effects of educational interventions on adolescent women’s behaviours, such as of physical activity, alcohol consumption, and vegetables and fruit consumption in the context of breast cancer prevention (Very low-quality evidence). Our confidence in the effect of educational interventions delivered via web messages for increasing women’s knowledge about the role of smoking for breast cancer prevention is limited (Low quality evidence). Similarly, low-quality evidence was identified for the effects of educational interventions to reduce women’s smoking behavior.Conclusion: Firm statements on the effects of educational interventions on young women´s knowledge and lifestyles for breast cancer prevention are precluded due to the very low-to-low quality of the available evidence.